Coconut Cream Pie
by Athina Blaine
Summary: A collection of various drabbles and one-shots featuring two boys that share a bond deeper than any ocean. Slice of life snippets, but the prompts can vary from time to time. MakoHaru
1. Eyes Closing

Cold.

_Makoto._

Wilted. Colorless.

_Makoto, wake up._

Pale, ashen hands draped over an unmoving chest. Olive brown hair fell against the white-trimmed coffin. Someone had put him in a black suit – _which made no sense Makoto loathes suits why would he want to be bbbburied in one. _His face was sunken and gray where it should have been flushed and lively because _that's what Makoto is, he's always so happy, he's not—_

Lifeless.

A corpse.

Haru awoke with a sharp gasp, trembling, fighting to breathe. The icy bathwater rippled around him, splashing on the sides of the tub. His heart hammered in his chest as he tried to remember where he was and that _Makoto is not dead he's fine I can call him right now and he'll be there because he wouldn't leave me like that he's fine he's fine he's fine._

Panic blocked his throat. He took several deep breaths, unable shake the horrible image from his mind, the _fear_, the picture of Makoto lying in a coffin and being lowered into the ground and swallowed by earth. Never again to laugh or stare at him with bright eyes and smile_—_

But he's fine. He's alive and he's fine, and he'll be there at school tomorrow and ask him what's wrong and Haru will say nothing but he'll _know_ because Makoto knows_ everything._

Haru sat back in the chilled bath water, fighting the swelling pain in his chest. _He's fine…he's fine…_

When his breathing slowed and his heartbeat returned to normal, he settled back against the rim of the tub, his eyes fluttering shut. The porcelain dug into his back, however, and his neck was achy and stiff. The chill had settled deep into his bones and he found that he couldn't stop shivering.

With a sigh, Haru unplugged the drain. He stepped out of the tub and toweled himself dry with shaking hands. _Just need to sleep...the stress is getting to me...just a bad dream...__  
><em>

Flipping off the bathroom light, he stumbled into his room and fell onto the bed, not bothering to change out of his swimsuit. He crawled to the center and cocooned himself in the blankets, desperately seeking warmth. He shut his eyes tight, forcing himself to breathe normally, all the while wanting nothing more than to call Makoto and be reassured by the sound of his voice.

_He's fine…_

It was hours before the shivers finally ceased and he fell into a restless, blessedly dreamless, sleep.

...

Title song: watch?v=N8jSzGUiT3o (sooo pretty!)


	2. Lost in Translation

Haru's eyes trailed the back of the DVD case. _… a golfer … stuck in the past … recognizing their love … _Had he already read this before? He felt a strange sense of Déjà vu. How long has he been reading these summaries?

"—watched the rehearsal episode yesterday." Haru couldn't make out the faint reply. Makoto laughed. "Well, I'm sorry I don't have as much free time as you do, Nagisa. I don't think I liked it too much anyway, the drama was a bit overbearing—"

With a sigh, Haru tossed the case onto the pile and picked up another, trying to ignore the fact that Nagisa has been chattering about some new anime for the past 17 minutes. He tried keeping up from his spot in the living room, but the conversation had gone all over the place (something about a deaf pianist? How did that make any sense?) and Haru quickly lost track.

Blinking away his stupor, he refocused on the DVD. _… a normal girl starts acting odd … seized by the devil … _

A horror movie? No good.

He threw it back onto the floor.

"Makoto?" Haru called. "I can't decide."

Makoto stepped out of the kitchen, his expression sincerely apologetic. "Didn't you want to watch that new Nat Geo documentary? I recorded it this morning."

"I can't decide," Haru repeated firmly.

Makoto smiled gently and turned to the receiver. "Listen, Nagisa? Is there any chance I could—?" Nagisa's voice cut him off and Makoto winced. _—think they'd go that direction with the new character— _"Wait, Nagisa."_ —did you see the part with the cat? I couldn't believe my eyes when they caught it!—_

Haru's hopes crumbled as Makoto sighed and vanished into the kitchen again. An imperceptible pout appeared on his face. "Yeah, I wondered when that black cat symbolism would come into play. They brought it up it nicely—"

Standing up, Haru meandered to the kitchen where Makoto stood hunched over the two bags of popcorn he had been in the middle of preparing when Nagisa had first called. "—loved the first recital. You could _feel _her passion with that violin—_ah!_"

Makoto tensed when Haru wrapped his arms around his waist and nuzzled into the curve of his spin. He quickly relaxed. Haru then reached up and limply pawed the chattering cell phone from his hand.

"We're trying to watch a movie," Haru murmured into the receiver, cutting through Nagisa's rant.

"_Eh? Haru-chan?_" Nagisa scoffed. "_Of course, who else would it be? Put Mako-chan back on the phone!_"

"No. We're going to watch a movie."

"_Oh c'mooon, Haru-chan_. _You get to spend time with Mako-chan all day every day; can't I talk to him for a little bit too?_"

"You've had plenty of time."

Nagisa _tsk_ed. "_Alright, alright, I get it. I'll see him at school tomorrow. Have fun with your make out session!_"

"We will."

Haru ended the call and placed the phone on the counter. Makoto trembled in his arms, trying to contain his silent laughter.

"Thanks."

Haru's lips twitched. "Don't mention it." He rested his chin in the crook of Makoto's shoulder. "So what's this new show about?"

Makoto took a second to answer as he began unwrapping the popcorn. "Oh, it's just something Nagisa got me watching a few days ago. It's nice so far, but I'm pretty far behind and Nagisa's begging me to catch up."

Haru fell silent, stepping back as Makoto unwrapped the two bags of popcorn and placed them in the microwave. The kitchen slowly filled with the sounds of exploding kernels and the scent of butter.

"We could watch it together, if you'd like," Haru murmured after a few moments, retrieving some plastic bowls from the cabinet.

"Hmm? Watch what?"

"That show. The one you were just talking about."

Makoto turned to him, his eyebrows slightly raised. "Hmm? Didn't you want to see that new documentary?"

"You said you recorded it, right?" Makoto nodded. Haru shrugged, setting down the bowls. "We can watch it tomorrow."

Makoto ripped open the bag. A wave of buttery steam flooded the room and he poured out the soft kernels. "Well, sure. I don't know if you'll like it, though…" He turned to Haru with an enthusiastic smile. "I'll go get my laptop. I'm only on episode three so we can just start at the beginning." He chuckled. "Nagisa's going to be thrilled; he loves talking about this stuff."

They both settled on the couch, popcorn bowls in hand, huddling around Makoto's laptop. A shared pair of earbuds dangled between them, occasionally shaking loose when Makoto leaned forward to make a comment about the episode. Haru smiled.

As the anime played, bits and pieces of Makoto's earlier conversation came into focus (especially the part about the deaf piano player, which was a fairly interesting plot point in his humble opinion), but Haru concerned himself more with how excited Makoto's voice got while talking about his pretty anime, and how he didn't have to worry about being lost in the conversation anymore.

That lasted all but three days, until Nagisa called Makoto to rave about some new parasitic alien anime, and how Nagisa couldn't believe they were going with the environmentalist angle, and how Makoto couldn't open his eyes during that last fight scene, and how even Rei felt that the show developed an unnecessary fixture on relationships, that they shouldn't have to focus on it as it weakens the tension.

And Haru became lost all over again.

…

*slaps keyboard* Shoehorn _all _the references!


	3. The Nightwalker's Guild

Why do I do all of my best writing at 1 AM? This is not conducive to my scheduling... But when that MakoHaru prompt wants to be written, it has to be written, no questions!

...

1 AM found Makoto sitting on his couch with a warm blanket wrapped around his shoulders. His laptop rested on the coffee table before him, the moving colors dancing around the room and whitewashing his face. He cradled a near empty glass of water, taking intermitted sips, his eyes never leaving the screen.

When the episode came to a close, he briefly wondered whether he could return to bed. Earlier he had awoken from a terrible, shadowy nightmare that left him trembling and sweaty. Haru slept beside him, blessedly unaware as he crept out of bed. He thought a quick glass of water, and maybe a chocolate bar, would calm him, but a half hour passed by and his skin still crawled at the thought of walking down that dark hallway.

So he figured, what better time to catch up on Nagisa's endless anime suggestions?

Time passed and he had already powered through five episodes of the pretty piano series, feeling significantly better. Reaching forward, he hovered over the escape button, and hesitated. _Aaah, but now I've become invested … I couldn't possibly go to sleep now. Not with an ending like that. _

He pressed the play button and settled back into the couch, finishing off the water.

About ten minutes into the episode, something began shuffling in the hallway. Makoto froze, his shoulders tensing up. His earlier unease returned to him as the shuffling grew closer. _Don't move. Just don't move, and it won't bother me._

Something it the wall. Makoto turned around, and his shoulders sagged with relief. "Haru, what are you doing up so late?"

Haru shuffled into the room, the light of the computer washing all color from his face. He had thrown on one of Makoto's baggy t-shirts and stared at Makoto with a confused, sleepy stare, as if asking him the same question. Instead of answering, however, he rubbed his tired eyes, yawned, and started for the back door.

"H-Haru? What are you-?" Makoto could only watch with a gaped jaw as Haru leaned down to slip on a pair of shoes, mumbling something under his breath. _Why isn't he responding? Where is he going?!_

It struck him the same moment Haru walked out the door.

_He's sleepwalking._

Makoto jumped to his feet, throwing on some slippers before following Haru outside. The cold, bitter air swept over his face, rushing down his nose and throat. Haru tensed up, but he made no move to go back inside. Instead he began stumbling down the sidewalk.

"Haru? Haru, can you hear me?" Makoto whispered, a puff of mist accompanying his words.

Haru didn't react beyond a slow blink, but he kept walking, murmuring something. Makoto leaned in, trying to make out the words.

"_…stop going…never should've…gone…free…_"

Makoto's frowned. He reached down and gently took Haru's hand, slowing to a stop.

"Haru?" he said in a low voice. He waited until Haru looked at him with droopy, sleepy eyes. "Don't you know how late it is?"

It took a long moment for Haru to formulate an answer. His expression became hopelessly confused, and he looked around as if trying to find the answer, swaying where he stood. "'M goin'…for a swim…need to clear my head…"

"A swim? In the ocean?" Fear slithered down Makoto's spine at the thought of Haru trying to enter the tumultuous, dark ocean in this state. "You don't even have your jammers on."

Haru's eyes widened in surprise for a moment, and he quickly glanced at his boxers. The movement made him falter, and he almost fell into Makoto's chest. "…swim free…can't think…without…"

"But, Haru," said Makoto, holding Haru as he regained his balance. He could feel him shivering under his fingertips. "The water's freezing this time of year. You'd get sick." Haru stared at him, uncomprehensive. Makoto sighed. "You should go back to bed."

Haru considered the proposal for a moment before groggily nodding his head. Smiling tenderly, Makoto took his hand once more and guided him back to the house and into the bedroom. Without another word Haru fell into the center of the bed and curled up in the sheets, breathing softly.

The sight caused Makoto to release a deep, relieving breath.

_Haru… you sure do know the best ways to scare me silly._

He returned to the living room to shut his laptop, now utterly exhausted. _It's a good thing I woke up earlier … who knows what could've happened if I hadn't been there … _But he didn't like thinking about it.

Making sure everything was put away proper, Makoto returned to the bedroom. Taking only the briefest of moments to remove Haru's shoes and tuck the blankets securely around his slumbering form, Makoto crawled back into the warm bed. His eyelids fluttered shut and he sank into the softness of the pillows, his fingers gently brushing the warm, sleeping body next to him.

_Don't scare me like that again…please…_

_..._

You won't believe how long I agonized over whether Haru wore his jammers to sleep with him. I know he usually wears them EV-ER-Y-WHERE, but to SLEEP? Correct me if I'm wrong.


End file.
